By Beth DeCristofaro
Here is my servant whom I uphold, … Upon whom I have put my Spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations, Not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street. A bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench, Until he establishes justice on the earth; the coastlands will wait for his teaching…I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you
as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, To open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness (Isaiah 42: 1-4, 6-7)
Let her keep this (oil) for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.” (John 12:7)
Piety
Lord Jesus, forgive me for my complicity in your Passion. My focus on this world blinds me to the promise of the next. My interest in myself causes me to lose sight of the needs of others, my brothers and sisters. Mea culpa, Lord. I love you, Lord. This week I will seek to see in your steps toward the cross the poor, the sick, the people caught in war and conflict. I will walk with you for my own and for their benefit, Lord. Grant us peace.
Study
http://www.usccb.org/nab/readings/031708.shtml
The servant of God called (me) for the victory of justice, grasped (me) by the hand. (Isaiah 42:6) Yet I repay him by humiliating him, torturing him and killing him on a cross. No I, personally, was not in Jerusalem. I was not yet a gleam in the eye of my Irish and Rumanian great-great grandmothers. But today I humiliate with gossip or partisan jokes and racist language. I torture by ignoring those in need or calling on the poor to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. I kill by withholding health care or in living a lifestyle which devours most of the world’s resources. I hurt the body of Christ by inflaming rifts between Catholics or between those who do not believe as I do and thus, I say, they are wrong.
St. Patrick came face to face with God during a childhood spoiled by kidnap and slavery. Instead of revenge, he chose to be a light of God to the nation who imprisoned him. He opened the eyes of the blind. Perhaps this week, as I walk with Jesus along the path to the cross, I can leave behind torturing, hurting, divisive habits. Perhaps I can strip myself as Jesus was stripped and take on his mantle – the gentle mantle of love and justice.
Action
As we walk with Jesus through this Holy Week, sorrowing in the torture and death of the Son of God, keep in prayer all those who are caught in areas of conflict within the world. They are on their own walks to the place of the skull. Pray that leaders will seek peace and care for their people rather than seek destructive power. Pray that the presence of God will be life giving for people who live in fear and who have no control over their situation.
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